Saturday, August 16, 2014

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers fairly surprisingly used a third-round pick in May's draft (69th overall) on running back Charles Sims, but he was expected to push starter Doug Martin for snaps right out of the gate.

Under that recovery timetable, Sims could return as soon as Week 10 (Nov. 9) against the Atlanta Falcons, but it's also possible he will miss the entire season if he has any setbacks at all. The Tampa Bay Times has suggested Sims is unlikely to be available before Week 13, which is just off the 12-14 week timetable and would be one of a few worst-case scenarios that include Sims missing his entire rookie season.

The Buccaneers do have a lot of running back depth, with Bobby Rainey and Mike James now the top two options behind Martin. Jeff Demps could have a better chance to stick on the 53-man roster now, but that seems likely to depend on what the team chooses to do with Sims. He could simply be placed on season-ending injured reserve, or if there's any chance he can play this season it would make sense for him to be placed on injured reserve/designated to return.

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